Quick Take: Razorock Essential Oil of Lavender Shaving Soap

(Okay, it started out to be a quick take, but the knife ran away with the spoon, and I got rather long-winded. All apologies.)

I’ve tried a lot of soaps at this point. Many, many. I am not exactly a sheltered neophyte when it comes to Razorock soaps, to say the least. I think of myself, to some degree, as being spoiled and hard to impress. So…what can an honest, inexpensive little soap like this do to make me look up and pay attention? Let us begin.

I have another soap that uses the same vegan formulation as this soap. It is the Essential Oil of Lime. This is a coconut based formulation with argan oil to give it that little extra kick. It’s probably one step up from the most basic of the Italian Barber/Razorock formulations (due to the argan oil). I’ve never found a lot of fault with the Lime soap, so I didn’t have any negative thoughts going in. Then again, I’d just been bowled over by RR’s new “super tallow” formulation, and I thought that I’d probably be able to find some faults. Super things…being better than non-super things. That was the thinking.

Um, well…

I am having a hell of a time coming up with anything bad to say. Very quick to lather, very voluminous, and protected great. If you find that you either require or prefer a vegan formulation, this one will treat you just fine. I didn’t find it drying in post shave, but I typically use some sort of balm on most days. For a lot of the year it is very dry in the Mountain West. Winter, most especially (that’s when this was written). You almost can’t keep your skin hydrated. So, there’s that weakness in my test, I suppose.

What else is left? The scent. I am a big fan of lavender. For a long time, I did not know this was the case. Lavender? Younger me sort of scoffed at the notion. I wasn’t a wimp. Lavender was for…I didn’t know what it was for. Maturity set in at some point. I would say that this is an earthy, straightforward lavender. No spicy notes, no fancy footwork. Scent strength is moderate, not overpowering, but there’s definitely enough to give you a nice jolt of lavender. If you’ve smelled the lavender soap of the English bath soap made by Yardley, this is very similar. Perhaps just a tad bit darker and earthier, and a little stronger. They are a good match, though.

For six bucks American (2017, perhaps a sale price), this is a killer deal. The soap performs and smells as well as you could possibly expect it to. Once more, hats off to the guys at Italian Barber. This hobby doesn’t have to cost a lot. Razorock, at every opportunity, is proving that point. I would have a somewhat hard time giving you logical reasons why this soap gives up anything to ones costing two or three times as much. Shoot, even at double the price I paid, soaps are still considered a value bargain. If you like lavender, especially in a straight, no chaser kind of way, this is a must-have. On a final note, this is certainly a soap that could work with shavers of all genders, provided that they’re looking for that woody, soothing smell of lavender.
Minor soap box issue: I’d just like to say that any scent is totally fine for any shaver, irrespective of gender or other construct. If you like the scent, use it. We often make suppositions that a female shaver won’t be into some types of scents, and that some scents that we have been trained to consider feminine won’t appeal to the dudes. These are just generalizations. Everyone’s nose should lead them to where they need to be. If you like smoke and leather, have fun. If you’re all about spice, that’s great. If you’d prefer a lot of floral notes, that’s a hundred percent okay. My only request is that you don’t apply so much cologne or perfume that evidence of your passing lingers for several hours in the elevator. That seems excessive, and causes people sneeze more than they need to. And that’s all I have to say about that.